Wednesday, July 14, 2010

Ratatouille getting 3-D re-release

Pixar's eighth masterpiece, Ratatouille, is being prepared for a theatrical 3-D re-release. The studio's stereoscopic supervisor, Bob Whitehill, revealed this publicly for the first time while discussing his work on 3-D for Toy Story 3.

"Ratatouille is one [film] that we’re exploring doing [3-D conversion on] and Brad Bird is very open to some changes, you know, some very subtle changes but slight reframings," he said in part. His complete comments, taken from a video interview with U.K. movie blog HeyUGuys released yesterday, are found here.

Confession: I've known about Ratatouille getting the 3-D treatment since my visit to Pixar in the spring, but was asked not to mention it until it was made public by the studio. But I hinted at it in this post.

Digital 3-D conversions take considerable time, so we're probably still years away from seeing 'Rat' in 3-D. As with 'TS3', Ratatouille doesn't need the 3-D —not at all— but I'm of the opinion anything that gets Pixar's classics back on the big screen is a good thing.

22 comments:

Darn! I was watching this the other day and realized that this was the only pixar movie that wouldn't look awesome in 3-D - It really doesn't need it. I was hoping the most for WALL-E or Finding Nemo to be re-released. Thanks for reporting the news, though.

I'm actually so excited for this! I never got to see Ratatouille at the cinema when it first came out, and now is my chance! But if there is one Pixar movie I think that really could have a good Pixar 3-D re-release, it's The Incredibles.

I'll go see it, but in all honesty I'd rather see Brad's other pixar movie, The incredibles in 3D. I feel like it hasnt even been that long since Rat released, so Im not exactly hyped to see it again in theaters. and the incredibles would be a lot more thrilling I think in 3D.

I'm all for getting Pixar films back into the theater at any time. I'm not sold on the 3-D thing since this fad rolls around every 15 to 20 years or so... and I can't stand wearing those glasses that take away pure whites (color contrast) on-screen! Either way, Ratatouille is absolutely under-rated and I often defend it among friends - hopefully a second time around will get more Americans on board with this Pixar masterpiece.

I personally am ready for 3d to retire. Its in danger of becoming over-saturated. When no preference is made as to what gets 3D treatment, there's a danger of people not wanting to pay four to five extra dollars per ticket for that particular experience and then movie theaters and movie studios are struggling to stay afloat. This is just a general sentiment and not directly aimed at Pixar, although I would like to see efforts go into more original stories. Plus, this means I'll have to buy another Ratatouille blu ray in a few years!! (grrrrrr)

thanks for posting and I agree--while it doesn't "need" the effects, I would love to see the film on the big screen. Though now, I keep thinking about how great the beginning scene with the old woman shooting up the kitchen could be amazing in 3-D.

This would be interesting to see. I'm especially curious to see the minor changes, although I'm sure they'll be hard to notice. I'd love to see the film again on the big screen, although for now I'll stick to my Blu-Ray... *waits for his Incredible Blu-Ray to come out* :D

I would have chosen another film, and I would have released it directly to 3D Blu-Ray, but that's just me. I have no problems with 3-D movies as it is, nor do I have a problem with re-rendering animated films into 3D. Cut-and-paste live action conversions? (Like Clash of the Titans or The Last Airbender?) No. ("Avatar: The Last Airbender" is a great TV show, by the way. The movie sucks.)

I think James Cameron will do a good job at converting Titanic, though. Imagine that vertical ship scene with falling people!

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